Reddit reviews The Big Book of Birth

I had two that I liked, The Big Book of Birth and Natural Hospital Birth. The first is a more neutral informative book I thought that went into a lot of the detail and options available. The second is geared towards pain management and how to avoid medical interventions but I don't remember it being super judgey either. I do hate the term "natural birth" though.

My favorite was the Big Book of Birth by Erica Lyon. It's easy to read and full of practical information to prepare you for the stages of labor (and managing each of them) and the various paths labor can take. It also addresses the many scary things that can happen during childbirth but in a way that is more reassuring and informative rather than frightening. Also there are a ton of birth stories included throughout. Besides driving home the "be flexible" approach to childbirth, these stories also gave me a very wide perspective on can happen during labor. For example, I might have been a little freaked out by all the shaking my body was doing in between contractions if it had not been for the fact that I had read a birth story that mentioned it. So when it happened to me I understood that it wasn't a problem and that is just one of the things that may occur.

I also enjoyed reading Homebirth in the Hospital by Stacey Marie Kerr for more great birth stories and tips for attempting natural childbirth and Pregnancy Sucks by Joanne Kimes who gives us permission to not love every second of growing child and showed me how really good I had it during my own pregnancy. Finally my week by week guide and general information book of choice was Great Expectations by Sandy and Marcie Jones. Happy Reading!